The other day, our family was watching the History channel’s documentary, “Food that built America”. It covered how big US food brands started, along with their successes, failures and challenges that made them huge and well-known until today. It was a long documentary and we were able to watch three segments only - stories of Heinz, Campbell, and Swanson. Heinz was founded in 1869 by Henry Heinz. It talked about Heinz’ market leadership that time in the sauces, condiments, and soup categories. It detailed how Campbell came in and challenged Heinz’ dominance in the canned soup category. Joseph Campbell established Campbell in 1869 and was later succeeded by Arthur Dorrance. His nephew Dr. John Dorrance further revolutionized the company as he invented the process of condensing soup. His quest for this invention coupled with ensuring good flavor was not an easy road. He had several failed attempts, but his determination and perseverance paid off. Campbell maintained its dominance in this category up to this day. Swanson is another company founded by Carl Swanson and later succeeded by his sons. They introduced frozen dinners which they advertised as “TV dinners”. It was a new concept in the 19th century and look how normal it is these days with microwaveable food packages. These three brands have centuries long distinction in the food industry.
A thought came to mind about the great founders, inventors, entrepreneurs whose names carry weight as their families continue their billion-dollar dynasties. I googled richest families or dynasties and found these names present along with their source of wealth – Walton family (Walmart); Mars family (Mars Inc); Koch family (Koch Industries); Al Saud (Saudi Royal family); Ambani family (Reliance Industries); Dumas family (Hermes); Wertheimer family (Chanel) among others. I further searched on the wealthiest people today and the brands/companies they founded – Bill Gates (Microsoft); Jeff Bezos (Amazon); Warren Buffett (Berkshire Hathaway); Elon Musk (Tesla); Mark Zuckerberg (Facebook) and many more. Just as these names are admired on how they have revolutionized various industries through their hard work and ingenuity, they are not exempt from any scandals or consequences of any bad actions/decisions that can bring down their reputations quickly. These may not be evident now but in time, these can catch up with them or their future generations.
A recent example would be a prominent 19th century figure, Egerton Ryerson. His statues have been toppled down and vandalized in various places in Ontario, Canada. He was known to be one of the architects of the residential schools of which recently we learned about the 215 children’s remains found in a site in British Columbia. During his time, he was lauded up to the point of meriting statues, and had a university and town called after him. His good contributions are tarnished now with the controversial initiatives he advocated. It is similar in the US with the murder of George Floyd, several statues of historical giants who were known to be slave owners were also toppled down e.g. Thomas Jefferson and George Washington. Similar protests are done across the globe, with recognized figures stained with their involvement in slavery, racism, genocide, corruption, etc.
The Bible says in Proverbs 22:1, “A good name is more desirable than great riches; to be esteemed is better than silver or gold.” No amount of money and fame can give one a good reputation. It must be earned daily with each decision being made. One must have a clear conscience and demonstrate integrity in their daily interactions – in one’s own family, circle of friends, neighborhood, workplace, and others. Even being mindful in keeping a promise/commitment or being careful of making one, can go a long way.
We cannot escape the consequences of our actions. If not exposed in this lifetime, it will definitely come to light by the Ultimate Judge in heaven. May we live with fear of Someone Above, our Almighty Father, who knows each motive and intent whether pleasing or bad. May we learn to surrender to Him and seek wisdom, so we can keep a good name and a clear conscience for His delight, glory, and honor.
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